Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 68478 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68478 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
I laugh, because the idea is silly. “He is not stealing me. And besides, I have a khui. I cannot leave this place. A khui cannot be removed.”
7
MARDOK
Ikeep my features carefully neutral, though inside I am struggling.
I could take Farli away from here. I could tell the others it is for her own good and she deserves a shot at civilization no matter what she thinks. Better yet, I do not tell the others until we are far away from Kopan VI and then they won’t have a choice about turning around. I could take her with me and seduce her with kisses and caresses until she never wants to come back here. Until she’d rather spend her time in my bed than anywhere else.
The thought fills me with intense hunger. I’ve never wanted anything as badly as I want Farli. And even though it’s wrong to think about it, I don’t care. I’m not a nice guy. Never have been, never will be. And the thought of keeping Farli—whether or not she wants to be kept—is a tempting one.
I keep that to myself, though. She thinks she is safe here. That she cannot possibly leave this planet because of her symbiont, but I know that our med bay technology can remove it as easily as it can stitch a wound shut.
Plenty of time to convince her to go with me still.
The more I think about it, the more I like the idea. Traveling wouldn’t be so lonely if I had someone like Farli with me. Someone to make me smile, to share my thoughts with, to watch light up in wonder at the sight of a ringed planet or passing by an asteroid belt that glitters with distant sunlight. I could get a freighter of my own, maybe, and she could help me crew it. Most of all, it’d be someone at my side.
Someone who also mouth-kisses like a vid actress and snuggles up against me as if I’m the thing she’s wanted most in this world.
She is talking happily to her chief, and I assess the men standing before me. To a one, they look fierce and untamed. Scary keffers, that’s for sure. They are dressed in loincloths, and a few wear vests strapped with knives of varying sizes. No one has capped horns, and a few of them are scarred up. To a one, they are bulky with muscle and look as if they could tear the much leaner (but taller) Trakan to bits without a second thought. I’m glad I’ve kept in shape since leaving the military, because I could stand toe to toe with these beasts if I had to. But it’s a little intimidating to see how fierce they are.
Farli turns back to me as the others put their weapons away or relax. “Bring your people. We will have a celebration and you can meet everyone.” Her smile is brilliant.
I nod. “I’ll let the captain know. He should meet the chief, offer his greetings.”
The intimidating one that has to be the chief nods, crossing his arms over his nearly bare chest. His eyes don’t seem to have the same glowing warmth that Farli’s do. Instead, they carry a warning. He might be welcoming us, but he is still uncertain of whether or not we can be trusted. I don’t blame him.
I turn and head back to where Trakan, Niri and Chatav are waiting. They look cautious, but Chatav steps forward to meet me.
“I’m not even going to rebuke you on disobeying orders,” he says to me. “Just tell me if they’re willing to meet.”
“They are.”
“And the one in front is the chief?” He eyes the big one over my shoulder. “Do you know if they have a particular greeting that would not be offensive?”
I think for a moment, and my ears flush with heat as I remember how Farli greeted me—with her mouth. “I, ah, think you should just introduce yourself.”
Our two parties meet, and even though things are a little awkward, soon enough we are all heading down into the gorge to check out the village. After Farli’s story of living in a cave, and given that these people are carrying spears and are dressed in skins, I expect something a lot more primitive than the tiny cluster of houses and the cobblestone streets. Each dwelling is topped with a tented set of skins complete with a smoke-hole, and the walls themselves are tightly bricked. There has to be several dozen of the small houses, and one large meeting house at the far end of the village.
“You built this all yourselves?” I ask Farli, surprised. “It must have been a lot of work.”
“We found it,” her hovering, protective brother tells me. It is the one with one horn, and he likes to walk between myself and Farli every now and then, as if he can push us apart. Farli shoves him aside and takes my arm to put a stop to that.